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Mixed six-foot verse

Meter
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

Six-foot (hexameter) lines that vary in metrical composition, mixing feet types for rhythmic diversity and expressive flexibility.

Detailed Definition
Hexameter lines incorporating mixed metrical patterns rather than uniform feet, creating ambitious rhythmic complexity. Rare in English due to natural stress patterns favoring shorter lines, mixed six-foot verse appears in experimental poetry attempting extended complex meters. Swinburne's long lines demonstrate challenges and possibilities of sustaining both metrical complexity and natural English rhythms across extended line length.
Example
Example in poetry:
Mixed six-foot verse combines different feet in hexameter: Longfellow’s “Evangeline” blends dactyls and spondees; modern examples include Derek Walcott’s “Omeros” mixing Homeric and Caribbean rhythms; A.E. Stallings’ “The Boat” adapts hexameter with English stresses; Victorian poets like Clough experimented with classical meters; rare in English but seen in metrical hybrids.
Additional Notes
Ambitious metrical project requiring sustained rhythmic complexity. Rare in English due to natural stress patterns. Swinburne and other experimental poets attempted such extended lines.
Also Known As
Varied hexameter Mixed six-foot Heterometric hexameter Epitritic hexameter
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